The bell's echo did not fade.
It sank.
Like something heavy being dragged deep beneath the ground.
KRRRIIINNGGG…
The sound lingered in Andi's chest long after it stopped ringing, vibrating through his ribs, settling somewhere between his heartbeat and his thoughts.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Then Rina exhaled slowly.
"…we have to go," she whispered.
Andi blinked.
"Go where?"
Rina didn't answer.
She simply turned the handle.
The door opened with a soft creak.
The corridor outside had changed.
Again.
It wasn't just darker.
It was… longer.
The hallway stretched far beyond what Andi remembered, the end swallowed in shadow. The flickering lights no longer followed a pattern—they blinked randomly now, leaving sections of the corridor in complete darkness for seconds at a time.
And the silence—
Was gone.
Something had replaced it.
A low murmur.
Soft.
Overlapping.
Whispers.
Andi stiffened.
"…do you hear that?"
Rina nodded once.
"Don't listen to it."
"That's not helpful."
"It's not supposed to be."
Her tone was flat.
Serious.
Final.
Andi swallowed whatever he was about to say.
They stepped into the corridor.
The moment Andi crossed the doorway, he felt it.
A shift.
Like stepping into deeper water.
The air pressed harder against his skin, heavier with every step.
Rina moved ahead of him, her pace controlled but urgent—not running, never running—but faster than before.
Andi followed closely.
"Where are we going?" he whispered.
"Somewhere safer."
"Safer than what?!"
Rina stopped.
So suddenly that Andi almost ran into her.
She turned slightly, just enough for him to see her expression.
"Nothing is safe," she said quietly. "Some places are just… less dangerous."
Andi opened his mouth.
Closed it again.
Fair enough.
The whispers grew louder as they walked.
Not clearer.
Just louder.
Layered voices overlapping, rising and falling like a tide.
At first, Andi tried to ignore them.
Then—
He heard his name.
"…Andi…"
He froze.
Rina kept walking.
"…Andi…"
It was faint.
But unmistakable.
He turned his head slightly, scanning the corridor.
"…did you just hear—"
"Keep moving," Rina cut him off sharply.
Her voice was low, but there was an edge to it now.
Warning.
"But—"
"Don't answer it."
Andi hesitated.
"…what if it's someone else?"
Rina stopped again.
Slowly this time.
Then she turned fully toward him.
In the flickering light, her face looked different.
Harsher.
"Say your name out loud," she said.
"What?"
"Do it."
Andi frowned.
"…Andi."
Rina shook her head.
"Again."
"…Andi."
"Again."
He hesitated.
But did it anyway.
"Andi."
Rina leaned in slightly.
"Does it sound the same?"
Andi blinked.
"…what?"
"Your voice," she said quietly. "Does it sound the same every time?"
He opened his mouth—
Then stopped.
Because now that he thought about it—
No.
It didn't.
The first time sounded normal.
The second… slightly off.
The third—
He couldn't even remember how it sounded.
A cold wave washed over him.
"…what does that mean?"
Rina stepped back.
"It means," she said, "you can't trust what you hear."
The whisper came again.
Closer now.
"…Andi…"
This time—
It sounded exactly like him.
Perfect.
Andi's chest tightened.
He clenched his fists.
"I'm not answering that."
"Good," Rina said.
"Because if you do…"
She didn't finish the sentence.
She didn't need to.
They continued moving.
Left turn.
Another corridor.
Right turn.
Everything blurred together.
At some point, Andi realized something was wrong.
"…we've been here before," he said.
Rina didn't respond.
Andi stopped walking.
"I'm serious. That door—"
He pointed behind them.
"The broken handle—I saw it earlier."
Rina kept moving.
"Then don't look at it."
"What?"
"Don't confirm it."
Andi stared at her.
"That's not how directions work!"
Rina stopped again.
Slower this time.
Then she turned.
"You want logic?" she asked quietly.
Andi didn't answer.
"Then you're in the wrong place."
Silence.
Then she added—
"If you believe we're going in circles…"
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
"…we will."
A sound interrupted them.
A sharp crack.
From somewhere ahead.
Both of them froze.
Not whispering.
Not dragging.
Something else.
Rina raised a hand slightly.
Stay.
Andi held his breath.
Another sound.
Closer.
Something scraping—
But not like before.
This one was irregular.
Erratic.
Unpredictable.
Rina's expression tightened.
"That's not the same one," she murmured.
Andi's stomach dropped.
"…what do you mean 'not the same one'?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she slowly stepped back.
Toward him.
That was new.
Until now, she had always led.
Now—
She was retreating.
The sound came again.
Faster.
Closer.
And then—
Something slammed into the wall ahead.
Hard.
The impact echoed through the corridor, dust shaking loose from the ceiling.
Andi flinched.
"…what was that?"
Rina's voice dropped lower.
"Don't let it see your face."
Andi's heart skipped.
"…my face?"
"Just do it."
She grabbed his sleeve and pulled him toward the side of the corridor, pressing him against the wall.
"Turn around," she whispered.
"What—why?!"
"NOW."
Something in her voice broke through his hesitation.
Andi turned.
Facing the wall.
His back exposed.
Every instinct screamed at him not to.
To watch.
To look.
To see what was coming.
But he forced himself to stay still.
Rina stood beside him, doing the same.
Silent.
Unmoving.
The sound stopped.
Right behind them.
Andi's breath trembled.
He could feel it.
Not touching him.
But close.
Too close.
A presence.
Heavy.
Breathing—
No.
Not breathing.
Something worse.
Like air being pulled in and pushed out through something that didn't understand lungs.
A wet, uneven rhythm.
Andi squeezed his eyes shut.
Don't move.
Don't turn.
Don't react.
Something brushed past him.
Not a hand.
Not a body.
But something… thin.
Like strands.
Dragging lightly across his shoulder.
Cold.
Damp.
He nearly flinched.
Nearly.
Rina's fingers tightened slightly against his sleeve.
A silent warning.
Stay.
Still.
The thing lingered.
Just for a moment.
As if examining them.
Then—
It moved on.
The sound faded.
Slowly.
Until it disappeared into the distance.
Andi didn't move.
Not immediately.
Neither did Rina.
They stayed like that—
Facing the wall—
For what felt like minutes.
Until Rina finally exhaled.
"…okay," she whispered.
Andi turned slowly.
His legs felt weak.
"What the hell was that?" he breathed.
Rina looked down the corridor where it had gone.
"That one," she said quietly, "hunts faces."
Andi stared at her.
"…you're kidding."
She didn't smile.
A low rumble echoed through the building again.
Deeper this time.
Closer.
The walls creaked softly.
Andi's chest tightened.
"…you said it gets worse after the bell," he said. "What did you mean?"
Rina hesitated.
Just briefly.
Then—
"They come out."
Andi felt his pulse spike.
"…all of them?"
Rina shook her head.
"No."
A pause.
"Just the ones that are awake."
Before Andi could respond—
KRRRIIINNGGG…
The bell rang again.
Shorter this time.
Sharper.
Like a signal.
Rina's head snapped up.
"…no," she whispered.
"What?"
"That's too soon."
Andi's stomach dropped.
"What's too soon?!"
Rina grabbed his wrist.
Hard.
"We need to move. Now."
"Where?!"
But she was already pulling him forward.
Faster now.
Not quite running—
But close.
The corridor ahead shifted again.
Subtly.
The walls narrowing.
The shadows deepening.
And in the distance—
Something moved.
Not one.
More.
Shapes.
Emerging.
Andi's breath hitched.
"…Rina…"
"I know."
Her grip tightened.
"Don't stop."
The whispers returned.
Louder.
Closer.
Layered with something else now—
Footsteps.
Dragging.
Scraping.
Watching.
Waiting.
Hunting.
"Rina—how do we get out of here?!" Andi demanded, panic rising again.
This time—
She answered.
But her voice was different.
Quieter.
Heavier.
"We don't," she said.
Andi froze mid-step.
"…what?"
Rina didn't slow down.
"We wait."
"For what?!"
Her eyes flicked toward him.
And for the first time—
There was something close to fear in them.
"For the second bell."